The present invention is related to refuse handling systems, particularly to those using covered refuse containers that are picked up and dumped by a front loader having fork arms.
Most modern refuse pickup systems make use of a number of portable containers at selected sites and collection trucks that include a mechanism by which the containers are lifted and dumped into a compactor or box on the truck. These systems provide more efficient solid waste handling than older, manual systems, but are not without drawbacks.
Nearly all "front loading" refuse collecting vehicles have a fork arm assembly used to hoist top opening containers over the operator's cab. These same arms tilt the lifed container to dump the contents into the truck box behind the cab. Hydraulic systems are generally employed for these purposes. A complete hoist-dump-return cycle is tediously slow. Certain dangers are also involved in hoisting the container over the cab, overhead wires being the most prevalent.
It therefore becomes desirable to obtain some form of improved refuse handling system that facilitates a short, safe, emptying cycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,597,927 discloses a method and apparatus for disposing of refuse using a front loading primary collection vehicle. The vehicle has lateral unloading mechanisms leading to opposite sides of the cab front. Each lateral unloading mechanism has a container lifting apparatus that engages the containers and tips them upwardly to dump contents on lateral conveyors. The lateral conveyors empty onto a central longitudinal conveyor leading from the truck front rearwardly to the box. The containers involved are mounted to relatively stationary, leg-supported bases. The containers are bottomless, the bottom closing wall being part of the stationary base. The unloading mechanisms pull the bottomless containers horizontally from their stationary supports and tip them up over the lateral conveyors. The vehicle must be located precisely relative to the container in order to prevent the bottomless container from being emptied before it is located above a lateral conveyor. The several conveying mechanisms and unloading apparatus and substantially to the overall cost and maintenance of the entire system. Furthermore, the relatively movable container and base present further complications and increased maintenance.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,730,253 and 2,730,252 to Oswald disclose containers having side opening doors that swing about an upper axis in which the lower edge is latched. When the container is moved to an elevated position, the latch can be released to enable the container materials to be dumped through the side door. The Oswald containers are described with specific reference to use as fruit storage boxes and are designed for lifting and emptying by specially designed loader arms that are mountable to a tractor. A mechanical linkage is also provided along the fork arms for manual operation by the tractor operator to latch or unlatch the side opening door.
The present refuse collection system includes a container that, unlike the Oswald containers, is provided specifically for receiving and emptying refuse material in direct association with a front loading refuse truck. It includes a side opening door and latch mechanism that locks the door in a closed position when the container is resting on the ground surface. The unlatching and latching mechanism is operated simply by producing a horizontal force against an upwardly projecting plate, causing the latch to disengage from a latch pin on the door. This is preferably accomplished by small hydraulic cylinders that can be mounted to existing front loader arms.